La Petite Adresse, a popular breakfast spot in the Mile End has opened a second location on Sources Boulevard in the West Island. Who would have thought, that a Park Avenue favorite serving breakfast would find a home in suburbia. Opened during the first week of November, it not only serves breakfast but is fully licensed to serve alcohol and fine gastronomic pub food.

La Petite Adresse is a gem and a welcome contender in an area that is heavily populated with chain restaurants in which the food is mediocre at best. Located in the old Fu Lam location, which has been fully renovated. The décor with its dark flooring and furnishings makes the locale look more like a Boite de Nuit than a suburban resto. They serve alcohol but also have a very interesting gastronomic menu. Although extensive for the moment, they are in the process of tweaking the menu daily to customer preferences as they go along. They also serve their famous breakfasts like the Mile End location, but have expanded to include lunch and dinner at the West Island location.

The restaurant is spacious with a large seating capacity, enough for the big lunch crowds that permeate this area at noon. The décor is dark with a relaxed pub feel, it has minimal suspended lighting where once the opulent chandeliers hung. The theme is black and rustic, yet modern with a mix of tables and banquettes in dark wood. A bar sits against the wall at the back away from the dining room where you can quietly have a drink or get rowdy without disturbing the rest of the diners. Although expansive, the sound levels this evening were minimal and the music low key.

I did not wait long to try La Petite Adresse. I had the pleasure of dining here five days after it opened and was pleasantly surprised at finding duck, rabbit, steaks, fish and much, much more listed on their menu. The service was solicitous and professional with the right amount of familiarity. For a new restaurant they have their act together and food was spot on.

A little intrepid at first, I had minimal expectations when I made reservations. I did not find the menu listed on their website, but took a chance anyways as I really was looking forward to going out this evening.

I was expecting classical pub food but was surprised to spot a variety French Bistro classics on the menu. Meals are refined and absolutely delicious. You will not find Nachos on the menu, but I am sure that it won’t take long before someone asks for it. It’s just the way things are here in the West.
Aside from the finer things on the menu, you will also find the classics such as Gourmet burgers, Fish and Chips and Sausages at reasonable prices. They have great daily specials starting at $12.00 to $15.00. This evening they had Eggplant Parmigianna for $ 12.00, Fish & Chips for $ 13.00 and Sausages for $ 15.00. We opted for the Fish and Chips and Poached Salmon, with dessert at the end of the meal as we were told that they were delicious and a must.

We started our meal with local beer called Le Cheval Blanc, perfect combination of pale ale to go with our Fish n Chips. The restaurant emphasizes local beers with some imports as well as a descent wine and cocktail list.

Everything sampled this evening was really tasty and well prepared. The Poached Salmon was perfectly cooked, tender and came drizzled in a lemon infused sauce, atop green beans, Nantais carrots, and cherry tomatoes and garnished with green onions. It was very tasty with the right amount of sauce and a good mix of healthy vegetables. Very light and a good sized portion. It hit the spot on all counts.

The Fish and Chips was also above par, we received three pieces of perfectly cooked crispy fish coated with panko crumbs, lightly deep fried with a side order of fries and a mayonnaise aioli.Also very tasty and filling, a good generous portion for the price, we were satisfied with the flavors and the tenderness of the fish. Not overly cooked or dried out.

For dessert we sampled the Crème Brulée and a Lemon Meringue tart with chocolate sauce on the side. Along with dessert we had Green Tea which had scents of Cardamom and we were adventurous with an order Matcha Tea.

The Crème Brulée was good, but the Lemon Merengue was a nicely represented, with dabs of merengue on top and served along with it a side order of chocolate sauce which was more for the strawberry garnish than for the tart. It was sheer perfection, a good combination of lemon tartness and sweetness and a complement to our meal.

We enjoyed our evening at La Petite Addresse and am are sure to return many times. I am already craving to try different things on the menu as I write this. A sign that they are doing things right. I am also content to see different and original businesses coming back to the West Island as it has been a sort of bland for a while. We need more places like La Petite Adresse in our backyard.

Let me add that with all the traffic snafus, construction, congestion, parking issues, extra time and stress for the commute into town, dining out in town has become not pleasurable and not worth it. So we need to be supporters of our local restaurateurs for good reason. Not only because it’s our community and we would like to see it booming, but because we are desperately in need to freshen the landscape. We also need to be comparable and competitive with businesses in town. La Petite Adresse fills that void and brings good gastronomic food to this sleepy community. I say, wake up everyone we need a welcome change.